SEATTLE - Six months after federal officials chastised Shell Oil for its faulty offshore drilling operations in the Arctic, the company has yet to explain what safeguards it has put in place or when it plans to resume exploring for oil in the vulnerable region. Shell's 2012 return to offshore Arctic exploration after a generation away was marred by high-profile problems, including hefty fines for polluting the air and a drilling rig that ran aground. The company canceled its 2013 drilling season, and its 2014 operations are in question.

Growing up, Evelyn Martinez's mother didn't want her to ride a bike. "She thinks it's not safe for women to be riding late at night, and cars are dangerous too," Martinez said. Moreover, her mother told her: "Bicycles are for men. " But after a chance meeting last year, Martinez joined an all-female, predominantly Latino cycling group that is both an answer and a challenge to the aggressive male biking culture. Like men's bike crews, it defies L.A.'s monolithic car culture with an in-your-face ethic, reflected in its name: the Ovarian Psyco Cycles Brigade.

The mannequin in the window of the Goldsmith & Klein fashion boutique in West Hollywood wore a sultry expression and a luxurious chocolate-brown fox fur stole draped over her arm. Next to the mannequin was a printed quote from Abraham Lincoln: "Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves. " The window display was one of several protests by merchants against West Hollywood's first-in-the-nation ban on fur apparel. After two years of debate, the ban takes effect Saturday.

UCLA cornerback Ishmael Adams was pragmatic. "That was a start," Adams said about the secondary's performance in the Bruins' 41-21 victory over Nebraska, "but we've got a lot of growing to do. " The secondary rated at the top of Coach Jim Mora's worry list a month ago. One corner was Fabien Moreau , a redshirt freshman who moved to defensive back a year ago. The other was Adams, a sophomore who played all but two games....

By now, the trio of fishermen from California, Colorado and Texas were supposed to be world record holders. But two months after hooking a mako shark that apparently weighed in at more than 1,300 pounds, the anglers have yet to even file the paperwork to claim it. "I talked to one of them after it happened and he said he's been out of the country," said Jack Vitek, world records coordinator for the International Game Fish Assn. based in Florida. "We still haven't heard from them," Vitek said.

WASHINGTON - The Department of Transportation announced steps Monday to combat a recent rise in pedestrian deaths that it said was partially due to what Secretary Anthony Foxx called "distracted walking. " Walking while texting or listening to music, or while on drugs, may have contributed to the increase, Foxx said. "Distracted driving, distracted walking, if that can be a phrase. … Their behaviors as they are driving or walking can impact our ability to keep people safe," Foxx said.

Spouses in same-sex marriages will be given the same preferential consideration in their visa applications now enjoyed by those in opposite-sex marriages, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said Friday. Kerry made the announcement in the consular section of the U.S. Embassy in London, one of the largest of the 222 visa centers in the world. His statement was distributed via email to reporters around the world. “As long as a marriage has been performed in a jurisdiction that recognizes it, so that it is legal, then that marriage is valid under U.S. immigration laws, and every married couple will be treated exactly the same,” Kerry said.

Asian American advocates are urging people who want to sponsor a family member for an immigration visa to apply now, in case Congress eliminates the preferences. The massive immigration bill passed by the Senate in June would no longer allow United States citizens to get green cards for siblings or married adult children. In the House, which is taking a piecemeal approach to immigration reform, a bill has been introduced that would do away with sibling visas. Under both proposals, spouses and unmarried children would still be eligible for green cards.

The U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday invited districts nationwide to begin applying for the latest batch of high-profile federal school-reform grants. Individual school districts will be able to seek about $120 million in “Race to the Top” federal funds. The four-year awards will range from $4 million to $30 million, depending on the population of students served. The Department of Education is expecting to make 15 to 25 awards. “The Race to the Top-District competition is an opportunity for trailblazing districts across the country to implement models of personalized learning so that every child graduates college- and career-ready,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in a statement.

Dear Liz: My partner passed away a little more than a year ago. I inherited his 401(k) and life insurance. I opened an IRA in which to place the amount of the 401(k), but the company told me that after a year (which is now), I have to withdraw the money over five years. Is that really required? I'd like to be able to have it on hand in case of an emergency but at the same time save it for our 2-year-old son's college education. Answer: Since you weren't married, you don't have the option of treating this inherited account as your own. That would have allowed you to delay withdrawals until after you turned 70 1/2 , if you wanted.